


No Strings Attached

by Skly



Category: Carmilla (Web Series), Carmilla - All Media Types
Genre: Anger, F/F, Fluff and Smut, Friends With Benefits, Hurt/Comfort, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-07-13 03:53:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16009724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skly/pseuds/Skly
Summary: A typical non-supernatural AU where Carmilla and Laura are both idiots who move from vague acquaintances to lovers to it’s-complicated. From great sex, to hurt and comfort, to maybe something more.





	1. Teasing (and More) at the Theatre

**Author's Note:**

> Sooo this fic started as a study in smut and evolved into something more. It's half-written, and should count around 6 chapters. Prompts for smut scenes are welcomed in the comments :D  
> Also, Carmilla and Laura meet through doing theatre together, but I'm not sure how relevant it's going to be in later chapters.  
> Kudos and comments (particularly on the writing) are always super welcomed!!

 

When Carmilla first met Laura, she didn’t think much about her; she was part of Lafontaine’s bunch of dimwits who also took part in their community theatre LGBT-themed play. She couldn’t care less, as she was only going to play a minor part; she was already doing a solid to Laf just showing up.

 

Of course, she was cast as one of the leads. With that prissy, rambling, over-achiever Laura Hollis as her girlfriend. _Awesome_.

 

She had found the whole ordeal way more bearable after the first repetition. She learned that Laura had been in a troupe for 5 years before, and it was showing: her acting was stellar comparing to the others’. It was almost enjoyable working with her, although Carmilla would never let it show.

 

The first time they kissed, Carmilla was almost shocked. First because she had legitimately _forgotten_ there was a kiss in the scene they were rehearsing, and also because, well _that kiss_. It felt like a first kiss – which was what it was to their characters – soft, slow, tingling. Carmilla had to fight the urge to deepen it. Instead she had broken the kiss gently and smirked at Laura. “Hope you enjoyed that, creampuff”, she had said before leaving the set, leaving a furiously blushing Laura behind.

 

*****

 

The show was to last 3 months, but they had a 3 months extension period, and Lafontaine couldn’t be prouder. “It’s our chance to sensitize more people and kids to LGBT struggles!” they had said. Carmilla remained as broody, sarcastic and asocial as usual. She didn’t need many people around her and the shenanigans on and off set with the other dimwits were annoying at best.

 

Laura was equally annoying, but more intriguing than the rest of the bunch. While she was preparing her Philosophy classes during lunch breaks, Carmilla had heard Laura talk passionately about her freelance journalist work, her Krav Maga classes and her over-protective dad. She was also, Carmilla had found out while accidently walking in on her in the dressing room, particularly hot.

 

Of course, Laura didn’t like her, like the rest of them (aside from Lafontaine, who had been Carmilla’s best friend for years, and Perry). But while the other actors were avoiding her at all cost, by fear or disdain, Laura wasn’t afraid to call her on her bullshit. It made her even hotter, and Carmilla was almost happy when the show was coming to an end. She had more and more trouble not devouring her mouth on scene, and she thought Laura had noticed, as the tiny blonde was smirking more and more between their two kissing scenes.

 

But on their penultimate representation, Carmilla thought she was going to combust.

 

She was positive she had knocked on the dressing room door and hadn’t heard any noise. But when she came in, she faced Laura’s topless and very smooth and muscular back. She audibly choked on her iced coffee and Laura had turned her head around.

 

“Oh, it’s you.”

 

For the first time in 6 months, Carmilla didn’t have any smart comeback; she was too busy imagining the softness of Laura’s skin, even as she put on a t-shirt and completely turned around.

 

“See you on set, Karnstein”, she whispered in her ear, before leaving the room.

 

_Holy smoke._

 

*****

 

The last kiss of the play was slower than it was supposed to be. And when Laura’s tongue twisted at just the right angles, Carmilla had to retain a moan. _Damn she’s good at this_. She placed her hands on the shorter woman’s waist as they rehearsed, but then moved them on her ribcage, right below her breasts. She felt Laura shiver against her and smirked against her lips, and broke the kiss to the public’s cheers.

 

“Well, that was a kick.”

 

*** _19 minutes later_ ***

 

Carmilla tumbled in the bathroom stall as Laura pushed her roughly against the wall. She was already in the bathroom when Carmilla had arrived and if the brunette thought her co-star was being uncharacteristically teasing before, it was nothing compared to how she pulled her against her, kissed her hard and dragged her urgently to one of the bathroom’s stall. Laura’s lithe body pressed against her own, her hands wandering urgently on her thighs, her waist, her breasts, her mouth sucking on her collarbone… It was all intoxicating and Carmilla was now moaning freely, tugging Laura impossibly closer. The blonde made quick work of her leather pants and was soon roughly thrusting her fingers inside her. Carmilla’s back arched and hit the wall frenetically. _More, more, more_.

 

She came quickly and quietly, clutching hard on Laura’s waist and bare shoulders. Just as she was coming down from her high, the bathroom door opened.

 

“Carmilla?”

 

Both women froze. Carmilla looked down; her pants were on the floor and Laura was still holding one of her legs with one of her own.

 

“Yeah, just uh, changing, Perry. Will be out in a few.”

 

“You’re sure you’re fine? These stalls are awfully small to change in.”

 

Despite Laura deliciously biting her neck again, Carmilla could hear Perry stepping closer.

 

“Really, I’m good” Carmilla exclaimed in an uncanny high-pitched voice. She cleared her throat and stared annoyingly at Laura, who looked back at her innocently, her hand still on her breast. “I’ll join you guys in the break room in 2 minutes.”

 

“Alright, dear” Perry said hesitantly. Also, have you seen Laura? We need to debrief with everyone for tomorrow’s finale.”

 

Carmilla and Laura stared at each other again. Laura mouthed what Carmilla thought was “outside”.

 

“I dunno I think she went, err, run an errand?”

 

“Thanks! Actually we need more chips! I’ll text her right away.”

 

Laura’s eyes went wide.

 

“Sure Perr. So, I’ll see you in the break room? I might come out of the stall, it’s very small indeed. I’m just not fully dressed yet…”

 

“Oh! Right! Sorry Carmilla!”

 

Finally she left, and both women let out a sigh.

 

“That was close” Carmilla said before kissing Laura deeply and letting her hands explore the shorter woman’s toned stomach. She was just about to tug her underwear when Laura pulled back.

 

“It was close, and now I have to go to the nearest convenience store instead of fucking you again”, she said with a pout.

 

Carmilla smirked and squeezed her butt lightly. “Yeah, and I’ve got to go in the break room before Perry comes back to check on me.”

 

They dressed as quickly as they could.

“… Rain check?” Carmilla asked as they were washing their hands. “Beside, I haven’t fucked you yet.”

 

Laura’s smirk was so dirty that Carmilla thought about taking her against the sink, the troupe waiting in the break room be damned.

 

“Oh, definitely.”

 

*****

The next day, Carmilla was constantly distracted. Laura had managed to tease her before, during and after their scenes together; brushing her thighs ever so slightly, caressing her lower back, not wearing any bra – which, _wow_ , she couldn’t believe she was the only one who noticed – and smiling constantly… Carmilla was usually good at remaining stoic in front of flirting women, but she wasn’t as used as getting so unbashfully teased at.

 

Now that they were at Lafontaine and Perry’s small apartment for the finale show party, Carmilla was just counting the minutes until she could leave unnoticed – hopefully with Laura. Unfortunately, her co-star seemed to enjoy the party very much, and she had no choice but to wait for an occasion that might never present itself. But finally, Laura detached herself from the crowd to get her phone from her coat, in Laf and Perry’s bedroom. Carmilla counted exactly 28 seconds before heading the same way. Thankfully, nobody was paying attention to her, as everyone was drunkenly singing. She found Laura texting in a corner of a room, head bobbing to the music from the living room. She sneaked in behind her.

 

“Hey cupcake” she murmured in Laura’s ear, using her raspiest voice. Laura merely flinched, but Carmilla could see some of her hair standing up on her neck.

 

“Hey Karnstein”, Laura shot back, turning around with a smile. Carmilla slowly wrapped her hands around her waist, reaching the top of Laura’s firm butt.

 

“So I believe we were rudely interrupted last time we were… mingling”, she stated matter-of-factly, before peppering Laura’s neck with long, open-mouthed kisses. She could feel Laura’s breathing quickening when she reached a spot right below her ear. Her hands moved lower on their own accord, and soon slid under Laura’s jeans, bringing the short blond even closer, while her lips also moved from her neck to her chest, kissing, licking, sucking the delicious skin right above her breasts. _God she has soft skin._

 

“Yeah… I believe you still… haven’t… fucked me… oh _fuck_ … yet.”

 

Carmilla released the soft skin from her mouth with a pop.

“Oh that can be arranged”, she said, grinning like the cat who’s about to get the mouse.

 

*****

 

They almost got kicked out of the taxi on their way to Carmilla’s apartment. The driver was apparently not a fan of their heavy making out session, with hands under clothes, and near-fucking if Carmilla was completely honest – she had been close to rip Laura’s panties when he had started yelling at them and threatened to kick them out. 

 

This time it was Carmilla who pushed Laura against the back of her door. She made quick work of her t-shirt and was left speechless in front of Laura’s bare breasts. 

 

“You... I knew it. You hugged me a little too hard in the first act and I thought I felt your nipples.”

 

Laura giggled, making her breasts bounce lightly. 

“Aren’t you gonna make them hard again?” 

 

Carmilla smirked back and lowered her head until her lips were just hovering on Laura’s nipple and gave it the slightest possible lick. Laura’s giggles quickly turned into moans when she took it all in her mouth, tugging it, sucking it... She then moved to her stomach, tracing her ribcage with her thumbs.

 

“May I?” she asked while playing with the waistband of her pants. 

 

Laura nodded, too busy moaning and intertwining her hands in Carmilla’s hair and pushing her down.

 

“Tss, so impatient.” Still, she made quick work of her pants and underwear until a completely naked, quivering Laura Hollis was standing in front of her.

 

“Fuck, Carmilla! Come on.”

 

“Oh… You want me to ‘come on’?” She caught Laura’s reply in her mouth, biting her lower lips. She felt the grasp on her hips tighten almost painfully.

 

“After you’ve been teasing me like this? And _fucking me blind_ in the bathroom less than 20 minutes after the show?” She grinded her hips harder against Laura’s core, making her whim again. “And you’re expecting me to go easy on you?” she ended her sentence in a rasp, barely holding herself together.

 

“Well at least I didn’t take so fucking long to get you off, did I? Because I swear that if you aren’t on my pussy within 10 seconds, I will…”

 

Carmilla wasn’t listening anymore, completely mesmerized by Laura’s blown pupils and sculptural body. She suddenly grasped Laura’s legs, pushed them up, and unceremoniously dipped her tongue directly in Laura’s heating core.

 

The profanities Laura screamed when Carmilla proceeded to lick, nip and suck with gusto on her gorged-up pussy would have made a priest blush. Carmilla couldn’t help but chuckle against her clit, before circling it with her tongue. Laura’s grip on her head tightened harder than ever, and the loudest series of “Fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!” erupted in the dark room.

 

Carmilla took her time to ease her out of her orgasm, but she barely had time to wipe her chin that Laura had pulled her up for a bruising kiss.

 

“That’s a good taste on you” she murmured, licking Carmilla’s lips. Carmilla kissed her back languidly, before whispering:

 

“Round 2?”

 

The grin on Laura’s face said it all.


	2. Chapter 2: The morning after

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo sorry for the wait guys! Here's a bit more smut and a dash of Carmilla trying to convince herself Laura isn't special... hope you enjoy it! I'll try to publish the next chapter later this month. As always feedback is welcomed :D

**Chapter 2: The morning after**

 

It smelled like sex. There was no other way to put it, thought Carmilla, as she stumbled her way to the bathroom. She and Laura had had sex again in the entrance, then on the kitchen counter, on the couch, halfway to the bedroom and finally in the bed, where she had woken up this morning – or early afternoon, considering the brightness.

 

She had been a tad disappointed to not find Laura still in the bed; she was usually leaving right after sex, or kicking the girl out if needed. But after such a marathon, she was surprised to not even have a note left by the shorter girl.

 

The surprise was cut short when she opened the bathroom door and found Laura stark naked on the toilet seat. She blinked.

 

“Hey. So your bathroom doesn’t have a lock.”

 

“I…errr, yeah, okay.” She closed the door swiftly, suddenly wide-awake.

 

_Well, shit_. _Do I need to get a lock now?_

 

*******

 

“You have such a nice apartment!”

 

“Thanks”, replied Carmilla between two mouthfuls of waffle.

 

She had made them a quick brunch, pulling all potentially edible food from the fridge and pantry while chastising herself. She _never_ did brunch after a sleepover. But then again, that sleepover involved several hours of particularly fantastic sex. With Laura. Who had been teasing her for the past 6 months. That deserved at least brunch.

 

They had barely talked during the improvised meal, but Carmilla had caught a few pensive stares from Laura. It was starting to make her uncomfortable. After all, she barely knew the girl. Gosh, what if she thought they were dating just because they had sex for 5 hours straight? She’d had enough cases of clingy, neurotic girls before.

 

“I particularly like your shower… and its bench.”

 

“Uh? Yeah, it’s cool.”

 

The shower was the only luxurious item in her home; it had a glass wall and a dark ceramic one, and most importantly 4 shower heads (3 of them on the wall), each with 4 different stream options. The fantastic shower was also a great sex spot, as Carmilla had installed a built-in bench in one of the corner. Now that Laura had mentioned it, Carmilla could only think about fucking her in there, and it was making her wet already.

 

“Maybe you could show me how you use it after?”

 

Laura had a glint in her eyes that made Carmilla forget about any idea of her being clingy.

 

“Oh, I definitely will”, she replied in a husky voice.

 

*******

 

Two hours later, Carmilla was sitting on the shower sex bench, completely spent. And she had never, _ever_ been spent because of sex before. She didn’t even know it was possible. _This girl is going to be the death of me_.

 

“So that was fun”, she said, still gasping for air. “Never thought you’d be that into me, cupcake.

 

Laura laughed loudly, her voice still hoarse from her earlier orgasms; Carmilla’s fingers had reduced her to such a screaming mess that the downstairs neighbour had knocked on their ceiling. (They did so again when Laura was eating Carmilla out, and she was hoping they wouldn’t call the landlord)

 

“Yeah, never thought I would be either… But your shitty attitude grew on me.”

 

“Oh, really? I thought it was my wholesome personality and killer body.”

 

“Ar ar, don’t flatter yourself”, Laura replied, before turning on the shower again. They had turned it off when it got too steamy to see anything.

 

“Mind if we actually shower this time?”

 

“Sure.”

 

They actually managed to keep their hands mostly to themselves – Carmilla couldn’t resist soaping Laura’s muscular back – and Laura was quick to put her clothes on.

 

“So that was fun”, Carmilla said while standing awkwardly in the entrance while Laura was putting her shoes on.

 

_This is why I never do mornings after. The talking. The goodbyes, with their fake see-you-next-time. Ugh_. _‘Thanks for the sex, see-you-never’ really should be a thing._

 

Although there was a weird pang in her chest when she thought about never seeing Laura again.

 

“It was fun indeed”, Laura said slowly, nervously tugging a strand of hair behind her ear.

 

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence before Laura got a small notebook and a pen out of her gigantic purse.

“Tell you what, if you ever wanna… have fun again, here’s my number”, she said, handing her a piece of paper. “Just fun”, she emphasized.

 

“Just fun I can do, cutie”, Carmilla replied, shoving the number unceremoniously in her sweatpants pocket.

 

After Laura was gone, Carmilla took the paper out and looked at it thoughtfully. She usually threw numbers right away after hookups. But the woman had given her more than 10 orgasms in a few hours, and she was feeling somehow obliged towards her.

_Because of the sex. Nothing more_.

 

So she put the phone number in a small box on her desk, determined to forget about Laura.

 

She hadn’t planned on tumbling into bed with her less than a month after, during another party at Laf and Perry’s. Somehow she gave Laura her phone number this time…


	3. Chapter 3: From Fucking to Feeling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it took an unexpected turn... oops? Carmilla is a bigger softie than she wants to admit, and Laura is a bit clueless.
> 
> Or: it starts by smut(ish) and ends in almost-tears.
> 
> Let me know what you think!

 

 

_It’s weird to think I have a regular fuckfriend_ , Carmilla was musing in her diary on a quiet Wednesday night. 

 

It had been 4 months since the first time she and Laura had started sleeping together. Four months should have seemed like a lifetime, according to Carmilla’s standards, and yet the tiny blonde’s visits tucked in nicely into her schedule. Laura would text her about once a week, and she’d text her the following week. They’d go grab a drink at the Anglefish pub, which was conveniently located 5 blocks from Laura’s apartment, and then... well let’s just say they were both glad that Laura’s only neighbour was a seemingly deaf, old lady. 

 

They’ve also hooked up twice while hanging out with the gingers. Or, more accurately, Laura had dragged Carmilla in a semiprivate place to have her way with her. The first time, it was in a dinner’s bathroom during brunch. The second time, in an alley nearby an improv cafe. 

“Jesus, cupcake...”, had panted Carmilla while Laura was giving her the best head she ever received - she wasn’t sure if it was the fact that Laura’s nose was bumping perfectly against her clit or because she was on her knees and yet still humping her hips roughly against the wall. 

“...we should see Laf and Perryyyy -oh fuck - more often.”

As a response, Laura had thrusted 2 fingers into her and made her come embarrassingly loudly. 

 

She had her revenge 2 weeks later when they were celebrating Perry’s promotion in an Italian restaurant. She had slid her hands below Laura’s skirt and had stroked her folds lightly, then roughly, then softly again, until a very flustered Laura had excused herself to the bathroom. Of course she had joined her...

 

Carmilla was surprised at how easy it was to be with Laura. Sure, they were mostly fucking, but they were always interesting fucks. The conversations before (“So why philosophy?”) and after sex (“Did you flip your tongue upside down? Seriously !”) weren’t her typical drunken one night stands small talk.   She also felt comfortable enough to stay longer at Laura’s house than strictly necessary. Her bed was extremely cosy and they often watched mindless Netflix shows between sex rounds. She even had fallen asleep a few times at her place. Always left before Laura woke up, though. 

 

It was different when Laura came to her house, because the tiny blonde would always fall asleep after her fourth of fifth orgasm, and holy Albert Camus did she sleep soundly. Carmilla had gotten used to buy frozen waffles and frozen fruits, in case Laura was staying over. They even read the newspaper together - Carmilla would get the Silas Daily News, that Laura worked for, and Laura would get her competitors and criticized every snippet out loud. They once did a crosswords competition - Carmilla won, although they’re still debating about it. 

 

Carmilla had wondered several times why she wasn’t annoyed about Laura’s sudden presence in her life. She was starting to freak out about the fact that she _wasn’t_ freaking out that she was seeing the same woman once a week (sometimes twice), whom she didn’t kick out right after sex and whom she even invited her home again. Whom she bought food for when she stayed overnight. 

 

Except... it all flowed. Laura didn’t get mad when she wasn’t available, she didn’t text her constantly, didn’t beg to see her again, hasn’t talked about relationship - for Plato’s sake, she was the one suggested a booty call arrangement!

 

So Carmilla had convinced herself that that was it: a fantastic no-strings sex arrangement that worked perfectly and that would stop when one of them would get bored. They might even remain friends, considering Laura was Laf and Perry’s friend… and that she wasn’t as annoying as Carmilla first thought she’d be. Maybe.

 

That was it. That was  _supposed_  to be it. 

 

But then Danny Lawrence came along. 

 

*****

It was a quiet Tuesday night at the Anglerfish. Perry and Laf were sipping cocktails, Carmilla was nursing a whisky, and Laura was already tipsy after one beer.  _Typical_. 

 

“Laaaaf, you’d make a great chemist”, Laura said after the red-haired had told them about the newest play they were a producer for.

 

“Yes, they’d be good at making things explode”, quipped Carmilla. 

 

Perry nearly choked on her drink while the rest of them laughed. 

 

“You better not play with science in our kitchen, Lafontaine!” she scolded as Laura giggled even louder. 

 

“Laura? Laura Hollis?” called a dark red haired woman from across the nearly empty bar. 

 

Laura squinted comically, and Carmilla was about to ask her if she knew every single ginger in the city when she waved enthusiastically at the stranger, nearly knocking Carmilla’s whisky off the table. 

 

“Holy Hufflepuff, Danny? DANNY LAWRENCE?? Perry, it’s DANNY!”

 

“Who the fuck is this Danny?” muttered Carmilla to Laf. 

“Never met her, but I believe she was Laura’s major crush at university...”

 

Carmilla took a sip of her whisky and was about to make a snide comment, when said Danny Lawrence stood up and walked toward them.

 

She spit out half of her drink as discreetly as she could. 

 

Over-6-feet-tall, a slim yet athletic figure, dark long hair, piercing blue eyes and a determination in her stride that made her look more Amazon than human, Danny Lawrence looked like a live Wonder Woman. And Laura  _loved_  Wonder Woman - Carmilla knew that, they had watched 2 of her movies last time they went at Laf and Perry’s.

 

So she took an immediate dislike to Danny Lawrence. Obviously because she was a perfectly put-together giant pain in the ass. The glint in Laura’s eyes when she sat down with them didn’t have anything to do with it. 

 

******

 

For some reason, Laura still contacted her, and they still hooked up. Almost as often as they used to. Carmilla was trying not to think about what Laura was doing (or rather, _who_ she was doing) on the weeks they weren’t texting.

 

Which was weird, because she usually didn’t care if her hookups were single or not. But Laura’s newest… association with Dany reeked drama. From the way she had stared at Carmilla and Laura from that first night, Carmilla had gathered that Dany clearly disliked her back. And Laura was her friend. Well, just a friend’s friend. Barely an acquaintance. Whom she had mind-blowing sex with. So, too close to risk anything.

 

So Carmilla did what she had done with all the other women she didn’t want to see anymore: pretend to have other plans, then stop texting all together.

 

She had barely seen Laura in over a month and had avoided meeting her through the gingers, when the tiny blonde had texted her again.

 

“How are you so busy??? I didn’t think you saw many people outside of Laf, Perry and me”

To which she replied: “I fuck many more girls other than you, don’t flatter yourself.”

 

Laura hadn’t texted her back.

 

***** 

Carmilla showed no emotion when, about a week after that last text, Laf told her Laura and Danny were officially dating, .

 

But then she kept on buying the Eggos and frozen raspberries. She didn’t even notice at first, until her freezer became quickly full. Just as the weight in the pit of her stomach became heavier. 

 

She ignored it. Staying away was best. She donated the extra food to a women shelter. She unconsciously bought frozen blueberries, maple syrup and pancake batter 3 days later. She resigned herself to make pancakes that she ate alone.

 

She blamed the terrible cramps on the food. But she knew that it was because she couldn’t help of thinking about Perry’s quiet birthday night. Which Laura was invited to. And which it’d have been weird not to attend, as Laf was, per usual, questioning Carmilla on why she wasn’t coming to movie nights anymore.

 

Fortunately, despite the very limited number of guests - Perry had only invited Laura and two of their university friends, Kirsch and Betty - Carmilla had managed to avoid Laura, who did the same.

 

Until Danny joined them and got to hug Laura, to kiss her, to make her laugh in the sickening, annoying way people  _in love_  do. But also in the intimate way people who are close do.

 

That’s when Carmilla realized. 

 

Somehow she had gotten used to the prissy annoying cupcake. And now, she missed her in a way she never had her.

 

\---------

 Of course, she nearly tumbled into Laura when she got out of the bathroom.  

“What the fuck, cupcake?” Carmilla hissed.

 

Said cupcake had her hands on her hips and a very pointed look. Carmilla tried to ignore how her eyes still shined despite the darkness of the  hallway.

“What the fuck  _you_ , Carmilla Karnstein! You’ve been nothing but rude lately! If you didn’t want to see me anymore, you could’ve said so  _nicely_.” 

“Oh, you want me to be nice? That’s rich, coming from someone who’s been hooking up behind her girlfriend’s back!”

 

Laura opened her mouth and clapped it back quickly.  

“You know what? Leave me the fuck alone. I can’t believe I thought you were even close to a decent human being. You can  _fuck off._ ”

“Oh, I’ll be fucking off with great pleasure. Good luck with your freakishly tall girlfriend, cupcake.”

 

Laura was still fuming when Carmilla grabbed her coat, bid the gingers and the guests adieu, and slammed the door on her way out. 

 

Tears threatening to come out.


	4. Chapter 5: Of Stalking and Spilled Cocoa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where there's a lot of feels, and they sorta get some of their shit together (well, they're trying, poor things).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally here!!!! My apologies in advance for the lack of smut (there might be some in the next chapter. and/or in the last one too! but not really in this one. oops.) and for the delay - it's safe to say that the penultimate chapter shall be published before April! Meanwhile, your kudos and comments are always forever appreciated :) To the story now!!  
> PS. I am the only one who feels like I don't space my text right? ^_-

 

It took less than a week for Lafontaine to start pestering Carmilla about her early departure at Perry’s birthday. Carmilla was half annoyed by it, half impressed that they managed to hold themselves for all 5 days (it turned out they had dropped their phone in the punch and were too hangover to replace it right away).

After half a dozen text messages such as “Seriously, Carmilla, wtf happened that night?” and some more colorful variations, Carmilla bailed and accepted the red-haired’s invitation to have pizza and beer near her workplace.

 

They barely took the time to exchange pleasantries and order their food and drinks before Laf cut to the chase.

“So, broody vampire, who pissed in your cornflakes the other night?”

Carmilla sighed.

“No one… I just wasn’t feeling well, that’s all.”

 

Laf arched a suspicious eyebrow, in a way that made Carmilla think about Laura.

Which was dangerous territory. _Not going there, nope_.

“Is it about Laura? I thought you guys were becoming good friends!”

_...Crap._

 

Carmilla scoffed forcefully and feigned disdain as best as she could.

“Friends? With _Laura_? I found she was becoming more and more annoying every time I saw her.”

 

Laf sipped their beer thoughtfully.

“You think so? Nah, Laura’s fine… but you might have found her more annoying because she spends so much time with Danny-know-it-all Lawrence.”

 

Carmilla was so relieved she took a large gulp of her beer and swallowed it too fast.

“Wait, you don’t like Danny?”

 

It was Laf’s turn to scoff.

“She seemed okay at first. But she doesn’t really talk to me. Barely to Perry, even. She takes a spotlight and brags about her achievement to impress Laura.”

“What kind of achievements? The only one I’ve figured out is that she hasn’t stop growing.”

 

Laf bursts out laughing, sending a few drops of beer on the table in excitement.

“Yeah well… President of the Summer Society Alumni, professional marathoner, champion in archery, etc., etc… But when I told her I once managed a Robin Hood’s kids play she looked at me like I was from another planet.” They shrugged. “It’s like she doesn’t care if you’re not an overachiever jock like her.

 

Carmilla laughed lightly. There was a silence when their pizzas arrived and they both digged in their plates.

“So Laura is a jock? Overachiever is believable, but…”Carmilla weighed in carefully while playing with a piece of crust.

“Yeah… I’m actually surprised they’re dating. Laura seems too… stubborn for someone like Danny.”

 

Carmilla stopped chewing.

“How so?”

“Well Perry told me that the last time she saw them at Kirsch’s party, Danny was trying to actively talk Laura out of eating more cookies....”

 

Laf and Carm exchanged a look and bursted out laughing.

“That should’ve went well” snorted Carmilla.

“Perry didn’t tell me, but that reminds me about a play a private kindergarten school asked me to direct. It’s a ridiculous story about exploding cookies…”

 

They spent the rest of their meal talking about Laf’s upcoming play and a potential visit to their old university during reading week. The succession of beers helped Carmilla’s mind being pleasantly numb. By the time Laf was staggering to a cab, Carmilla had led a very enthusiastic bartender to the bathroom for a quickie.

Thoughts of Laura barely there.

 

*******

It would have been fairly easy to forget about Laura for the next two months; Carmilla kept herself busy, with a succession of one-night stands, the holidays season - which, for Carmilla, meant getting smashed with her siblings on Christmas Eve, catching up on Netflix, drinking and hooking up again on New Year Eve - and preparing her 3 winter trimester classes.

Carmilla nearly succeeded. But Laura still haunted her from times to times. Every time she passed by the university’s cupcake shop. Every time she went to the Anglerfish, half hoping she wouldn’t see Laura, half hoping she would. Every time she would have to endure insipide conversation with a pretty face she’d hope to ride later and would think about how Laura made both teasing and conversation so much more interesting.

 

In the middle of January, Carmilla felt like failing herself miserably when she visited (stalked, really) Laura’s Instagram, after Laf posted a picture of the premiere of the LGBT play from a year ago. Not much had been posted since her last visit; some political stans, some winter shots, some holiday pictures…

Carmilla frowned while clicking on a picture of Laura and Danny drinking a hot chocolate, seemingly outside.

 

_Finally some hot cocoa after some ice skating at @torontoicering! #babyitscoldoutside._

 

Her frown deepened, as she thought she had heard Laura mention she hated ice skating. _Apparently love changes you… humm_.

She thought about writing a snickering comment, but stopped herself. Instead, she clicked on Danny’s Instagram  and her heart made a little jolt (as the page loaded).

 

Laura seemed happy. Pictures of Laura eating a cookie while typing an article, Laura and Danny sharing frozen yogurt, Laura making a snow angel…

 

Carmilla closed the tab. It was too much. It was all too much.

She opened Tinder and spent most of her evening buried between random legs, actively trying to fight thoughts of _Laura_ , _Laura_ , _Laura_ … of Laura being happy with someone who was the exact opposite as her.

 

*******

A few weeks of Internet stalking later, Carmilla was seriously considering disconnecting herself from all social media and live as a hermit for the rest of her life just so that she wouldn’t hear or think or potentially see Laura Hollis again.

It was quite late, she was finally done grading several dozens of assignments - most of them half-assed done - and was about to settle in front of an episode of Sleepy Hollow when there was a timid knock on the door.

 

Carmilla almost missed the sound, but as she got closer to her entrance, she heard the sound of teeth chattering became distinct. She hesitated, hand on the knob. Laf would’ve called, her siblings would’ve tried to barge in, and Carmilla could think  - could only _hope_ \- of one person who would dare knocking at her door past midnight.

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and stared bewilderingly.

Laura was wearing her Doctor Who jumpsuit under a loosely closed coat. Her hair was stuck on her head and face and just like her outfit, was half wet and half frozen. She was shivering badly and her eyes were fixating on anything but Carmilla’s face.

“Care to let me in?”

 

Still staring at her red and puffy face, Carmilla wordlessly stepped aside and closed the door behind her. Laura was still staring at the floor. Sighing, Carmilla went to the bathroom; she could now feel Laura’s gaze burning a hole in her back. But when she came back with a towel, her eyes were back on the carpet.

“Shoes off” she said in a voice that was much rougher than she intended.

 

Laura shifted to extract her feet from Harry Potter-themed boots, still shaking uncontrollably. Carmilla tried to ignore how her heart melted at the sight.

“Hey. Look at me” she said much softly. _Better_.

 

Laura’s eyes were glassy, her gaze still unfocused. She seemed on the brink of tears and Carmilla stepped up closer.

“Laura, you’re gonna catch your death. Come on, let’s get you in the shower.”

 

She didn’t dare touch her yet. She was afraid Laura would collapse. She was afraid _she_ would too. Laura dropped her coat - a spring coat, Carmilla realized, too light for the current weather - and her hands were shaking on her jumpsuit’s zipper as she pulled it down. A tear escaped on her cheek.

“Please” she murmured barely audibly.

 

Carmilla threw the towel on a nearby chair and gently took the zipper from the trembling and red fingers. The tears kept falling on Laura’s cheeks as she removed the jumpsuit, leaving her in a pair of crumpled and damp pyjamas, as if Laura was going to go to bed but had decided to take a walk in the rain instead. Carmilla grabbed the towel and wrapped her carefully in it. Laura was still shaking, not from the cold but from sobbing quietly. She was looking down again. _Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK_.

 

“Hey, come on.” But Laura shook her head and kept crying. Carmilla sighed again.

“Is it the giant bean? She really seems like a pain in the ass.”

 

Suddenly her arms were full of a nerve-wracking crying Laura Hollis. Carmilla nearly tumbled down from shock but managed to hold on to Laura.

 

“Hey, hey”, she muttered, stroking Laura’s hair. It was still wet and cold; she pulled Laura closer. They stayed like this for several minutes, Laura’s sobs turning into sniffles, her head crooked in Carmilla’s neck. Until… 

“Atchoo!”

“Gesundheit, creampuff” Carmilla chuckled. “Now let’s get you in the shower.”

 

Carmilla had left Laura in bathroom with some clothes and a fresh towel and was halfway to the kitchen to make hot cocoa when she heard the tiniest “Carm?”

She turned around so fast she nearly tripped. Her eyes met Laura’s honey brown gaze and there was a moment when she almost engulfed Laura back in her arms, because she never, ever wanted to see that utterly miserable look on Laura’s face again.

“…thanks.”

 

Carmilla just nodded and went to the kitchen. She waited for the click of the bathroom door and slid down on the nearest wall. _Fuck. She’s back_.

 

********

When Laura tiptoed out of the bathroom, Carmilla had set out two freshly made cups of cocoa on the coffee table and had put on Sleepy Hollow on Netflix. Laura sat down next to her and immediately took her cocoa. They started watching the episode, sipping their drinks in silence.

“So”, Carmilla muttered after a few minutes, “How have you been?”

After 20 more seconds of silence, she dared a look on her right. Thankfully, Laura wasn’t crying anymore, but was staring pensively at her cocoa. Carmilla gulped some of her down, burning her tongue.

 

“Danny thought we were together.”

 

Carmilla tried to cough as discreetly as she could.

“But… we weren’t. That was clear from the beginning, cupcake. Just two friends who like to have a good time together.”

 

She caught the shadow of a smile on Laura’s lips.

“Yeah, of course. But she thought she and I were together.”

 

Carmilla spilled some cocoa on her pyjamas.

“And… you… Wait, weren’t you?”

 

Laura frowned.

“Course not. Otherwise I would’ve stopped hanging out with you. Well, y’know, sexually.”

“But you did. Two months ago.”

 

Laura frowned again, making her usual bunched up face Carmilla was so fond of.

“Because you were being a jerk. Not because I wanted to stop seeing you.”

 

They stayed silent for a moment, Carmilla’s mouth hanging open slightly.

“Okay, so… okay. So why on earth were you being all couply with Lawrence? And why did… Laf told me you were dating... ”

 

“I wasn’t being couply! And we were dating, but it’s not like we were officially _girlfriends_ or anything! ” Laura exclaimed, her cocoa dangerously tilting in her lap.

Carmilla raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, fine” she gruntled. “Maybe a little. I just…I was so happy I got to date my college crush, you know? But…”

 

She sighed, head falling down again. “We didn’t have the same perceptions about our relationship. I wanted to take it easy and see where it could lead. She wanted me to move in with her!” she exclaimed, the cocoa now freely flying out of the cup.

 

Carmilla bit her lip. When she had met Laura, she had mistaken her for a prim and proper little miss-perfect. Even when they started sleeping together, in the back of her mind she always thought Laura liked having fun with her, but that she ultimately wanted to settle down with another overachiever – such as Lawrence – to have the 1,5 kid and the white-picket house in the suburbs. It turned she, the girl who rarely slept with the same girl twice and who shuddered at the word “relationship”, had been wrong. Still, she was wondering how someone as smart as as Laura didn’t figure out  that Danny wanted to be with her earlier….

 

“What else happened? You just decided to run away in this shitty weather because you had an argument with your non-girlfriend? And you came here?

“I…”

Laura’s knee bounced up, her fists clutching. _What the hell happened cupcake?_

“I don’t… your place was closer. And it’s nothing. Just some stuff Danny told me…”

“Laura….”

“Carm.” She sat straighter, her tone firm. “I don’t… she just… she told me stuff I wasn’t ready to hear, okay? And I don’t want to talk about it. Or about relationships in general actually.”

 

She was halfway to making her adorable bunched-up face, but Carmilla knew it meant not to push further. She sighed and thought about her own disastrous attempt at relationship, 5 years ago. Which she also didn’t want to talk about. _Oh, this I can relate to, cupcake_.

 

“Fine. But you better clean up that cocoa.”

Laura looked around, a little “oh” escaping her lips.

“Sorry” she mumbled sheepishly.

“Come on, I was joking. My couch is crap anyway. Wanna watch the rest of the episode?”

 

They spent the next 15 minutes watching heads being decapitated and detectives investigating supernatural occurrences in silence. Carmilla didn’t dare breathing loudly. She was back. Carmilla tried desperately to stop the hope blossoming in her chest; but Laura was here and maybe, just maybe, she somehow had forgiven her for being a complete asshole. And sure something had gone wrong with Danny – she’d have to wait to know exactly what, so that she’d had a good reason to punch Agent Orange – but she had came here and they were talking again…

 

“Carm?”

 

Lost in thought, she hadn’t noticed Laura scooting closer.

“Humm?” She tried to maintain the most disaffected air she could manage.

“Can we cuddle? Like, just cuddle. I… I missed you.”

 

 _I missed you too_ . The words were stuck in her throat, but she managed to open her arms. One second later, Laura was snuggling against her, her head resting on her chest. _Shut up_ , she mentally chastised her traitorous heart while wrapping Laura into a tighter embrace.

 

*******

The next few days were a swirl of pure laziness, where every moment together was spent in bed, either cuddling, snacking, working – on preparing classes for Carmilla and doing research for Laura – and watching bad romcoms and horror movies. If Laura was a natural night cuddler before, it was like she couldn’t let go of Carmilla in her sleep. She would grip her tightly and mumble nonsense; Carmilla took the habit of stroking her hair and kissing her forehead to release the tension from her face. On the morning of the third day Laura had arrived, Carmilla got woken up but a languid kiss and wandering hands… which of course she responded to.

 

“Wow, cupcake”, Carmilla muttered when they were both out of breath. “And here I thought I had been friendzoned 3 days ago. What gives?”

“Mmm, I dunno, I’m feeling better”, Laura chuckled, before peppering her neck with kisses. “Beside, you’re a great laid.”

 

Carmilla laughed so hard she toppled to the floor and brought Laura down with her. They didn’t get out of the bedroom until past noon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaawww, these useless gays, amiright? ;) In the next chapter, Carmilla gets emotional. Why? It might not be because of Laura this time... ;)   
> Thank you for reading! :D


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